courtesy titles
Formal address words
Courtesy titles are the honorifics placed before a person's name to show respect or indicate status: Mr., Mrs., Ms., Miss, Dr., Professor.
They're called "courtesy" because their use is a matter of social convention rather than legal requirement.
In formal correspondence and professional settings, courtesy titles remain standard; casual contexts increasingly drop them.
Some style guides now recommend asking which title a person prefers.
- MissUnmarried female's honorific
- Mrs.Married woman's honorific
- ladiesWomen, respectfully addressed
- honorificsRespectful name additions
- salutationExpression of goodwill
baronetage · sir · master · knighthood · lord · dowager · peerage · landed gentry · aristocracy · etiquette · politeness · styled · protocol · decorum · good breeding · deference · ceremonial roles · rank and file
- etiquettemanners, politeness, etiquette, table manners, civility
- nobilityking, queen, prince, princess, duke
courtesy titlesnicknames
Informal substitute names
first names · pet names · given names · diminutives · terms of endearment
courtesy titlescredentials
Evidence of qualification or identity
degrees · military ranks · rank · noble titles · hereditary titles
courtesy titlesnicknames
Informal substitute names
aliases · pseudonyms · stage names · pen names · handles
courtesy, courteous, courteously, courteousness, discourteous, discourteously, discourtesy, court, courts